FKT: Ty Smith - Colorado Trail (CO) - 2022-09-13

Athletes
Route variation
West to East, Collegiate East
Multi-sport
No
Gender category
Male
Style
Self-supported
Start date
Finish date
Total time
9d 7h 32m 0s
Photos
Report

Notes on tracking: I have many waypoints marked on the garmin connect map, just look at the ones labeled "ct1-106," 106 total points for the trail. Also, I used the Suunto Ambit Peak 3 gps watch, which tends to underestimate mileage by 10-15% depending on switchbacks and tree cover so most of the days appear to be 5 or so miles short. 

 

I initially started with an eye on the unsupported time set by Jeff Garmire, so I began with what I estimated to be 9-ish days of food. When I got near Copper Mountain, I realized I might not have enough battery to keep my headlamp and watch running, and definately not my phone. So this, along with the prospect of having to ration food for the next 115 miles pushed me towards town where I sat for an hour or 2 charging things and eating. I thought about throwing in the towel on the whole attempt and ended fairly early that night, sleeping by 1030pm. I slept for 10 hours and woke up with new motivation to finish out the trail in 1 final push even if it meant not getting the fkt in the style I wanted, but I figured as long as I still beat the unsupported time I should be able to claim self-supported, so here we are. For the last 90 miles, I slept about 1.5 hours and ran a lot more than I did the previous 7-8 days of the trail. I've never ran any ultra marathons and have only hiked a couple 50+ mile days before this attempt, so it felt good knowing my body can hold up going that far without substantial sleep.